


felis felicis

by bloominsummer



Series: kiss me under the mistletoe 2020 [8]
Category: K-pop, SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Based on That Reddit Post, Friends With Benefits To Lovers, M/M, Minor Xu Ming Hao | The8/Yoon Jeonghan, a story where the cat is the MVP
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-01
Updated: 2021-01-01
Packaged: 2021-03-11 05:40:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,671
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28100073
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bloominsummer/pseuds/bloominsummer
Summary: Posted by u/jwoo1707 in r/relationships2 days ago| 98% upvotedRocket Like 4 | Wholesome 10 | Heartwarming 18 | Hugz 2My fuckbuddy [27M] is so kind to my cat. He'd always greet her first and brings her treats from time to time. She'd literally get upset when he leaves. I think I might be developing feelings for him, but I'm not entirely sure of the reason. Like, is it because I like him or because my cat does? What should I do?View Entire Discussion[526 Comments]
Relationships: Jeon Wonwoo/Kim Mingyu
Series: kiss me under the mistletoe 2020 [8]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2042560
Comments: 17
Kudos: 381





	felis felicis

**Author's Note:**

  * For [mnwnism](https://archiveofourown.org/users/mnwnism/gifts).



> thank you for giving me a reason to finally write this fluffy piece involving minwon and a cat who’s debatably smarter than the two of them combined.
> 
> the premise of the story is based on that one reddit post!! special thanks to twitter user jinniespring for letting me borrow her name for feline naming purposes (cough cough).

**Posted by u/jwoo1707 in r/relationships**  
 _2 days ago_ | 98% upvoted  
Rocket Like 4 | Wholesome 10 | Heartwarming 18 | Hugz 2

My fuckbuddy [27M] is so kind to my cat. He'd always greet her first and brings her treats from time to time. She'd literally get upset when he leaves. I think I might be developing feelings for him, but I'm not entirely sure of the reason. Like, is it because I like him or because my cat does? What should I do?

> **Comment: abracadabra | 1.2k points**  
>  _2 days ago  
> _ ask him out! invite him to spend the holiday with you or something. besides, if you genuinely thought your cat is like, playing a Jedi mind trick on you to like this guy, you would've posted this in r/sex lolllll.

> **Comment: huihuihuihui | 92 points**  
>  _2 days ago  
> _ so you can say the cat is one of the benefits huh ;)

> **Comment: horangHAE | 179 points**  
>  _14 hours ago  
> _ imho it's fair game if you caught feelings, since technically he did got attached first (to your cat)~

**View Entire Discussion** [526 Comments]

* * *

This isn’t how Wonwoo had planned to spend his Christmas Eve. Out of the kindness of his heart, he offered to host this year’s gathering at his humble abode, so his closest friends can waste away the 25th with their loved ones without having to clean up their respective residences from traces of hell.

People may think he’s exaggerating, but Wonwoo truly isn’t. Last year, Jeonghan almost strangled Soonyoung when he spilt a bit of wine on the new carpet Minghao bought as a holiday present. By almost, he means Jeonghan’s iron fingers had to be pried away from around Soonyoung’s neck by a mildly alerted Seungcheol.

So.

The gathering at his place.

It goes rather smoothly until the very end, but Wonwoo is getting far ahead of himself here. Seokmin shows up a couple of hours early to help him prepare the dishes and butter Wonwoo up for the investigation that is sure to follow upon the others' arrival. An hour later Seungcheol comes with two bottles of red wine, one in each hand, intrusive questions on the tip of his tongue.

 _Where is lover boy? Not around?_

Wonwoo shoos him away without giving him any answer and Seungcheol bounds over to the living room to find Kei, who hisses at him in warning when he tries to approach. _Good girl_ , Wonwoo thinks, beaming at her with pride.

Soonyoung wouldn’t be Soonyoung if he doesn’t knock raptly at Wonwoo’s front door at seven o’clock on the dot, grin already loose from whatever pre-gaming he did. Jeonghan bursts into the place just as Wonwoo picks up his phone to call the older man. He’s fashionably late as always, auburn hair mildly dishevelled. A sheepish Minghao tails closely behind him, an explanatory flush high on his sharp cheeks.

Wonwoo doesn’t question what had made them late, because he’s not sure he wants to know the reason.

They dine and catch up with each other’s lives. Wonwoo listens for the most part, as Kei demands his attention and no one else in the room can give her what she wants. Surprising, he knows. Although Wonwoo’s had the same circle of friends for almost a decade, Kei is only relatively friendly towards Minghao.

He supposes that’s why he was downright baffled when she took an instant liking to Mingyu.

Okay, it might have been the fact that the first time the younger man—then only a co-worker to Wonwoo—visited his place to go over a project proposal, Mingyu had come prepared for battle. He claimed to have seen pictures of Kei on Wonwoo’s social media profiles, an explanation to why he had treats in his pocket.

Wonwoo remembers how his cat had purred blissfully, looking the happiest he’s ever seen her with Mingyu’s fingers busy scratching the back of her left ear. She looked up with Wonwoo with those gleaming golden eyes, tilting her head slightly, as if to say: _you should keep his one, human_.

It’s been close to a year since then, and as Wonwoo's relationship with Mingyu progressed, so did Kei’s.

The hour hand of the wall clock has just shifted to the number 9 when Jeonghan slurs, “So? Are we still not going to meet the boyfriend?”

Minghao shoots Wonwoo an apologetic look and plucks the beer bottle out of his pouting husband’s hand. The rest of the group stare at him inquisitively, waiting for his answer. Even Seokmin, that little traitor—Wonwoo expected some loyalty from him, at least. Sighing, Wonwoo knows that he’s better off giving them what they want from him, so he begins his rehearsed speech.

 _Mingyu is not his boyfriend. Mingyu has a family thing. Mingyu is not meeting anyone here even if he didn’t have a family thing, because Mingyu is not his boyfriend_. _As of now, they're just sleeping together._

“Aren’t we far past the phase of sleeping around with young, hot studs?” Soonyoung asks cheekily once he finishes, wiggling his eyebrows at Wonwoo. Wonwoo’s teeth gnash and Kei, sensing his annoyance, begins to growl in Soonyoung’s direction.

“O-okay,” his friend immediately says again, hands raised in the air in apology. “I don’t want any trouble, little kitty.”

He isn’t sleeping around, alright? Since he first had sex with Mingyu, the younger man—only by a year, fuck Kwon Soonyoung’s unsolicited commentaries—is the only person Wonwoo’s allowed to warm his bed. Unfortunately for him, that’s about the extent of their relationship. They work together, sleep together, and in the morning after Wonwoo often wakes to find Mingyu crouching next to Kei’s feeding bowl, singing slow tunes to her before he has to leave.

At this point Wonwoo's pretty sure about his feelings for Mingyu, but Mingyu told him all about his year-end plans with his family and never once extended him an invitation. He’ll have to delete his Instagram from his phone to avoid interacting with Mingyu’s holiday updates the moment he posts them. Yeah. Wonwoo will do that first thing tomorrow.

No one asks him follow-up questions after that. They probably let him off the hook out of pity, but beggars can’t be choosers. Wonwoo takes the Christmas miracle in the form that comes to him, lets the chatter melt into background noise as he sips and sips and sips his tall glass of red wine. Refills it some more, and sips again.

After he successfully ushers out the drunken group out of his apartment, Wonwoo throws himself on the couch and lets his body sink into the soft cushioning. He pats his thighs a couple of times; the resulting sounds should be enough to prompt Kei to come bounding over to him and take her place on his lap, but she never does.

Wonwoo calls for her once, twice, and then a third time when he doesn’t get as much a faint purr in response. As upset as Kei might be because there were many non-Mingyu individuals invading her personal space tonight, she wouldn’t have ignored Wonwoo twice, much less three times. He starts looking for her in earnest then, opening the door to every room in the place and ending up empty-handed.

That’s when he realises something was awfully wrong.

Ten minutes later, the apartment is a shipwreck and Wonwoo still couldn’t find her—so he panics. Grabs his keys and phone before he runs out of the place, hoping that she’s somewhere inside the building. No luck with that. His entire floor is free of signs of an intellectual feline and his doorman says he hasn’t seen a hint of orange dashing through the lobby.

Wonwoo spends another half-hour sprinting around the neighbourhood in search of Kei, but his lungs start to give up on him, the muscles of his thighs burning in over-extortion. He's forced to crash on one of the benches in the community park when his vision dots with stars. Wonwoo pulls out his phone then, frantically dialling the last number on his call log.

Again, this isn’t how Wonwoo had planned to spend his Christmas Eve—because instead of getting connected to Soonyoung like he initially wanted, Mingyu ends up being the one who picks up his call.

As if things can’t get any worse, Wonwoo comes to this realisation belatedly. Without bothering to double-check the name flashing on his screen, he sobs into the connected line. He’s already let out a string of shrieks, followed by _oh my god I don’t know where she went oh my god what if she’s hurt oh my god please I think she slipped out the door when you guys left_ , before he hears a voice that isn’t Soonyoung.

“… _hyung?_ ”

Fuck.

“Sorry,” Wonwoo blurts, sobering up in an instant at the sound of Mingyu’s voice. He tries to go for a monotonous voice and fails miserably. “I didn’t mean to call you. Must’ve just, um, pressed the wrong thing. Enjoy the, uh, family dinner. Bye.”

“ _Wait,_ ” Mingyu tells him and Wonwoo doesn’t know why he is wasting precious time like this. “ _What’s happened?_ ”

It’s the way he poses the inquiry, so soft and full of genuine concern. Behind his close lids Wonwoo can see Mingyu’s, eyebrows knitted together in worry, corners of his mouth downturned. His warm hands coming up to frame Wonwoo’s face and angle it until he’s able to catch Wonwoo’s gaze, read the answer to his question from his eyes.

So Wonwoo tells him. Slowly, as he catches his breath, all the while thinking where to look for her again once Mingyu hangs up. Mingyu listens to him carefully, the loud conversation in the background of his call gradually quieting. Hearing Mingyu’s even breathing through the receiver calms Wonwoo in ways he can’t begin to explain.

“ _I’ll be there in…_ ” Mingyu trails off, pausing for a moment, “ _20 minutes, max. I’m not far, but I think there’s still some traffic jam at this hour._ ”

“Wait—”

Mingyu ignores him, which Wonwoo would have called him out for if the circumstances were different. “ _You can continue looking in the mean time, I’ll call you when I’m there. Okay?_ ”

“Mingyu—”

“ _I gotta drive now, hyung. See you soon._ ”

The line disconnects and Wonwoo moves the phone away from his cheek, looking at it blankly for a few moments. He makes himself a promise: when this nightmare is over and Kei is back in his arms, safe and sound, he’ll finally take that chance with Mingyu. But for now, Wonwoo gets up from the bench and starts power-walking around the park.

True to his words, Mingyu calls him after fifteen minutes and Wonwoo shares his location to make it easier for Mingyu to locate him. He stands by the fountain in the middle of the park, waiting for Mingyu to come. Before long he sees Mingyu jogging toward him in full party attire—a coral blue dress shirt hidden behind his jacket, suede pants and a pair of shining leather shoes.

“Have you been crying?” is the first thing he asks when he reaches Wonwoo's side.

Wonwoo punches his stupid, toned chest. “Are you really going to make fun of me right now? Kei’s missing!”

He keeps launching his fists at Mingyu, though his attacks grow increasingly weak. Wonwoo’s frustrated and he’s overwhelmed and he probably shouldn’t treat Mingyu this way, considering he left his family on Christmas Eve just to help Wonwoo with his crisis.

“Alright. Stop, stop,” Mingyu catches his wrists, fingers easily forming loose circles around the circumferences. “Hey,” he says sternly when Wonwoo fights against the restraint. “Wonwoo.”

“Don’t tell me she’s just a cat or anything like that because I swear—”

Wonwoo’s cut off mid-sentence by the gentle pressure of Mingyu’s lips against his. His protests dissipate into thin air in an instant, and Wonwoo finds himself melting against the younger man; hot wax over a mould.

“I’d never say that,” Mingyu whispers upon separation. He pulls Wonwoo close until the older’s head is cradled against his chest. “We’ll look for her together, yeah? And once we find her, she’ll be totally fine and completely unapologetic for having gone on this impermissible adventure, just as we expect her to be.”

Wonwoo gives him a wet laugh for his efforts. He buries himself closer to Mingyu and listens to the steady heartbeat coming from behind his ribcage.

“Calm down for me.” He cards his fingers through Wonwoo’s hair. “For her, okay?” Wonwoo nods and Mingyu loosens his hold, guides Wonwoo’s face up to meet his gaze. “It’ll be faster this way.”

“Okay.”

This time Mingyu releases him completely, then takes off his jacket and puts it on Wonwoo before he has the chance to object. “God, you’re freezing,” Mingyu explains as he drags the zipper up. “Did you check the boiler room yet?”

“The what?”

“Your building still has a boiler room, that’s why it’s hard to get hot water in the morning when everyone’s taking a shower at the same time. You wouldn’t know, since you like to take yours cold. Even in the dead of winter. Beats me why.”

Mingyu carefully takes Wonwoo’s hand in his before starts walking toward his place.

“Tonight is freezing, the boiler room is warm, and if Mr Park didn’t see her in the lobby, then she might’ve not left the building at all. I just thought of it when I got out of the car and felt how strong the wind is.”

“How did you know Mr Park is working tonight?”

“Talked to him last time I came over.” Mingyu rubs his thumb over the back of Wonwoo’s hand. “He said Christmas Eve is his last shift for the year.”

Of course.

“Oh.”

They get to Wonwoo’s apartment in no time, then Mingyu is making quick conversation with Mr Park as Wonwoo watches on, tongue numb for a multitude of reasons. His doorman leads the way to the boiler room and Mingyu calls out for Kei into the pitch blackness the moment the door swings open. No response.

Wonwoo’s heart sinks to his stomach.

Mingyu turns on the light in the room by flicking the switch on the wall next to the door and walks down the stairs, seemingly adamant to prove his hypothesis. As his knees start to lose what little power remained in them, Wonwoo sits down at the top of the steps and buries his face in his palms. They’re wet again from his tears and when Mingyu comes back he’d no doubt—

“Meow _._ ”

He looks up and Mingyu’s standing right in front of him, Kei curled up against his chest, blinking sluggishly at the two of them like she’s just woken up from a good nap. She probably _has_ , but Wonwoo is entirely too relieved to scold her for it right now. Instead, he stands up and takes Kei from Mingyu, holds her tight and kisses her furry little head again and again. He can hear Mingyu thanking Mr Park and apologising for bothering him, them exchanging a few scarce words before he brings Wonwoo to the elevator.

Once they’re back inside Wonwoo’s apartment, Mingyu sits him down on the couch and starts assessing the state of his residence. Wonwoo will let him judge him as much as he wants, he’s rather preoccupied with stroking Kei’s belly and scratching her chin the way he knows she likes. She peers at him curiously and leans up once to lick the evidence of tears from his cheek, pulling away with her tongue out because she doesn’t like the salty taste.

“I’m a mess,” he mumbles to Mingyu, still looking down at Kei.

The younger man takes a seat next to him and gathers Wonwoo’s body so that he’s sitting in between Mingyu’s spread legs, back pressed flush against his chest.

“You’re fine,” Mingyu murmurs in reassurance. He taps Kei’s nose once, gentle. “And you, little missy,” he speaks to her, “are definitely on Santa’s naughty list this year.”

She does nothing in defence, but when Mingyu moves his hand away Kei reaches out a paw in his direction. Mingyu gets the signal—she doesn’t want him to stop touching her. Wonwoo can sense him smiling, the room lighting up with him, then Mingyu’s rubbing the side of his index finger all over her cheek. Kei keens into the attention given to her, totally oblivious to the chaos she’s created.

They continue to take turns caressing her until she closes her eyes again, head pillowed on Wonwoo’s forearm but angled toward Mingyu, as though she’s trying to make sure he doesn't leave. Wonwoo cants his head slightly and finds Mingyu’s mouth in his direct line of sight. Careful not to wake Kei in the process, he leans in and kisses him. Slow, gentle, full of gratitude.

Mingyu stares down at him with a dazed look in his eyes. “Is that _thanks for finding my cat_ kiss?”

“Yeah.” Wonwoo wipes residual tears from the corner of his eyes. He’ll thank Mingyu in other ways later, but for now, this has to suffice. “You’re like the sexy firefighter who carries the ladder to fetch the kitten stuck atop a high branch.”

“Sexy firefighter, huh?”

“Yes,” he confirms again. “That’s what I said.”

“And what does the sexy firefighter have to do to get the cat owner’s to agree to date him?”

Since the question comes out of nowhere, Wonwoo chokes on his surprise and almost jostles Kei out of his arms. Thankfully he manages to regain some amount of composure soon—just enough to let out a shaky response of, “I guess the sexy firefighter has to ask.”

“Fair enough,” Mingyu nods. Wonwoo sees the resolve solidifying in his eyes. “Wonwoo-hyung, go on a date with me?”

“Yes. I would love to.” 

What? It’s not like Wonwoo has a problem with the prospect to begin with. With that out of the way, he leans up to kiss Mingyu again. Wonwoo moves his mouth languidly against Mingyu’s own and tries to remember to breathe through his nose so he won’t turn blue. Mingyu presses forward, a tender kind of eagerness in his action, and Wonwoo smiles into the kiss, happy.

“You know,” Wonwoo mouths against his sweet lips when they part, “Kei is borderline hostile with most of my friends.”

“What?” Mingyu pulls away, frowning. “This little angel right here?” He glances down at her sleeping form, somehow’s already forgotten the hysteria she caused Wonwoo to experience. “She’s so sweet to me though?”

Yes, she is.

“She’s guarding me for someone special when that person isn’t around,” Wonwoo breaks it down to Mingyu gently, settling into his embrace. A familiar scent washes over Wonwoo’s senses as Mingyu wraps an arm around him to reel him close. “I don’t think anyone’s ever going to have a chance other than you, because she’ll scare them right off.”

“Ah,” Mingyu makes a knowing sound. “You’re saying that you’re stuck with me. That your decision’s been made.”

Wonwoo takes one of Kei’s front paws in his hand, toying with it until he sees the pink beneath all the white. “In Ancient Egypt they used to worship cats, even going as far as to depict deities in their image. If Kei happens to be one in disguise… I wouldn’t want to risk her wrath by disobeying her very, _very_ obvious orders.”

“Please just say you like me too,” sighs Mingyu. Wonwoo wants to point out that _he_ hasn’t even said the words properly. “Please?” he prompts again when Wonwoo remains quiet.

“I like you,” Wonwoo eventually admits in a low, shaky breath. The moment hangs heavy between them, months of pent-up feeling finally set free. “I like you, Mingyu.” This time, the confession comes out a bit more steady. “If you want, I’ll come with you tomorrow and explain to your family why you had to leave in such a hurry tonight.”

The aftereffects of wine he downed during dinner is now catching up to him. It’s made him emotional before, but now he’s just drowsy. Wonwoo feels Mingyu’s mouth pressing against his temple, curved into a beautiful smile.

“I would love that.”

“Okay, then.”

“And I like you.”

His arm around Wonwoo tightens and Wonwoo hums in response, mouthing the words _I like you_ back at Mingyu, although he’s not entirely sure his vocal cords are cooperating with him right now. It doesn’t matter—there’s plenty of time to tell him tomorrow. And the day after that, and the day after that, and hopefully every day in the coming year, too.

“You know… a part of me thinks she did this on purpose. Like she knows exactly what’s she’s doing,” Wonwoo hears Mingyu say in a soft voice just as he’s about to drift off to sleep.

He has to admit that he’s inclined to agree with that sentiment. Kei’s always been smarter than him, anyway—just look at her excellent taste in men.

* * *

**Posted by u/jwoo1707 in r/relationships**  
 _1 week ago_ | Edited 2 hours ago | 98% upvoted  
Rocket Like 6 | Wholesome 17 | Heartwarming 29 | Hugz 5

My fuckbuddy [27M] is so kind to my cat. He'd always greet her first and brings her treats from time to time. She'd literally get upset when he leaves. I think I might be developing feelings for him, but I'm not entirely sure of the reason. Like, is it because I like him or because my cat does? What should I do?

UPDATE: Cat gave me the biggest scare of my life and ran way on Christmas Eve. I panicked and dialled his number by mistake. He came help me find her. I was going to ask him out right after, but he beat me to it. So, uh. I guess we're boyfriends now. 

> **Comment: huihuihuihui | 59 points  
> ** _2 hours ago  
> _ jwoo1707, ur cat is literally the best wingperson i ever know

**View Entire Discussion** [1.3k Comments]

**Author's Note:**

> this was a challenge to write because my inner monster wanted it to be 20k of pining and sexy times leading up to what happened in this story, but it was a good exercise to keep things concise while maintaining coherency... [I HOPE] hahahaha. hope you guys enjoyed it <3
> 
> [twt](https://twitter.com/blminsmmr/status/1344995663767957504?s=21) | [cc](https://curiouscat.me/bloominsummer)


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